Fitness, nerve and the willingness to still be out there after four hours. Not everyone passes that test.
1Rafael NadalTwenty-two-time major champion whose physical game got stronger as matches stretched past four hours.1000pts
2Mats WilanderWon the 1988 US Open final over Ivan Lendl in a five-set battle lasting four hours and 54 minutes.943pts
3Novak DjokovicOwns one of the best fifth-set records of the Open era and saved two championship points to beat Federer in the 2019 Wimbledon final.840pts
4Roger FedererPlayed some of the longest finals in Wimbledon and Australian Open history, winning most of them.800pts
5Aaron KricksteinAmerican with one of the best five-set win rates of the Open era, remembered for his 1991 US Open epic against Connors.692pts
6Michael ChangBeat Ivan Lendl over five sets at the 1989 French Open aged 17, cramping throughout.692pts
7Dominic ThiemCame back from two sets down to beat Alexander Zverev in a fifth-set tiebreak in the 2020 US Open final.692pts
8Boris BeckerGerman who won a six-hour Davis Cup five-setter against John McEnroe in 1987, then one of the longest matches ever played.600pts
9Andy MurrayWon a string of marathon five-setters late in his career, including on a metal hip.600pts
10Carlos AlcarazSaved three championship points to win the 2025 French Open final in five hours and 29 minutes.600pts
11John IsnerWon the longest match in tennis history, 70-68 in the fifth set at Wimbledon 2010.600pts
12Jimmy ConnorsWon a string of five-setters at the 1991 US Open aged 39, including a comeback from two sets down against Patrick McEnroe.491pts
13Stan WawrinkaBeat Djokovic in back-to-back five-set major epics in 2013 and 2014.491pts
14Lleyton HewittAustralian who turned five-setters into endurance contests and rarely lost the physical battle.491pts
15Kevin AndersonBeat Federer from two sets down and then John Isner 26-24 in the fifth set of a six-and-a-half-hour Wimbledon semi-final in 2018.491pts
16Jannik SinnerCame back from two sets down to win the 2024 Australian Open final and holds a strong five-set record.360pts
17Andre AgassiCame back from two sets down to beat Andrei Medvedev in the 1999 French Open final and complete the career Grand Slam.360pts
18Ivan LendlRecovered from two sets down to win the 1984 French Open final against McEnroe.0pts
19Bjorn BorgWon the 1980 Wimbledon final in five sets after losing an 18-16 fourth-set tiebreak.0pts
20Pete SamprasWon a five-set US Open quarter-final against Alex Corretja in 1996 despite being sick on court, and many more marathons in his prime.0pts
Photo credits
- Mats Wilander — Corinne Dubreuil / Eurosport, CC BY 3.0
- Aaron Krickstein — Israel Press and Photo Agency (I.P.P.A.) photographer, CC BY 4.0
- Dominic Thiem — si.robi, CC BY-SA 2.0
- Boris Becker — Barcex, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Andy Murray — Christopher Johnson from Tokyo, Japan, CC BY-SA 2.0
- John Isner — si.robi, CC BY-SA 2.0
- Jimmy Connors — John Mathew Smith & www.celebrity-photos.com from Laurel Maryland, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0
- Kevin Anderson — si.robi, CC BY-SA 2.0
- Andre Agassi — Xfranksun, CC BY 4.0
Comments 2
All three of their five-set matches went to Alcaraz; Sinner's counter is a 2024 Australian Open final he won two sets down: https://youpick.best/articles/sinner-vs-alcaraz-ranked
YP
ypb-teamAug 21In 2013 Murray recovered from two sets down for the seventh time as a professional. The five-set case, plus fifteen further questions: https://youpick.best/articles/andy-murray-ranked-many-ways
YP
ypb-teamOct 23
